On May 20, 1998, Kipland Phillip "Kip" Kinkel killed his parents and then went on to open fire at his school at Thurston High School the very next day. In this research paper, I will be posing the following questions that detail the different psychological, sociological, and anthropological perspectives of this event: To what extent did Kip Kinkel's mental health influence his actions? How do the education system and familial structures contribute to feelings of isolation and lead to violence in teens? And finally, how do media portrayals of violence shape cultural narratives and general perceptions? These questions aim to provide additional frames about mental health, societal elements, and cultural influences that may have played a role in …show more content…
You aren't worth anything.” Kip reportedly tried many things to stop the voices inside of his head– even punching his head at one point. Additionally, an incident was reported where Kip had disrupted English class by proclaiming, "God damn this voice inside my head!" Dr. Bolstad testified that he believed Kip had murdered his parents and opened fire at his fellow students under the influence of these voices. Frontline 2000 -. Later in a handwritten note by Kip, he wrote, “My head just doesn't work right. I have to kill people. I don't know why, but I do. I am so sorry for that! Why did God do this to me? I have never been happy. I wish I was happy. I wish I had made my mother proud. I am not a snob! I tried so hard to find happiness. But you know me, I hate everything. I have no other choice.” What is more is that Joyce Naffziger, a private investigator in the case of STATE v. KINKEL, testified of her findings of multiple cases of mental illness in Kip’s extended family– including schizophrenia. (FRONTLINE, 2000) Moreover, Dr. Richard J. Konkol, a pediatric neurologist also testified of his findings through multiple tests and scans– most notably a SPECT test, where the neurologist found that Kip had an underlying dysfunction of specific circuits in the brain which he linked
Kathryn Kish Sklar I have read Kathryn Kish Sklar book, brief History with documents of "Women's Rights Emerges within the Antislavery Movement, 1830-1870" with great interest and I have learned a lot. I share her fascination with the contours of nineteenth century women's rights movements, and their search for meaningful lessons we can draw from the past about American political culture today. I find their categories of so compelling, that when reading them, I frequently lost focus about women's rights movements history and became absorbed in their accounts of civic life. I feel Kathryn Kish Sklar has every right to produce this documentary, after studying women's rights movements since before college at Radcliff College, Harvard University and U. of Michigan where earned various degrees in history, and literature.
The lives of everyone in the town of Springfield Oregon changed on May 21st of 1998. A quiet boy named Kip Kinkel became known as “The Killer at Thurston High” after killing both of his parents, murdering two classmates, and severely injuring 24 others. There are many factors in the 15 year old boy’s life that led up to the horrific events that occurred on that day. The same factors that influenced the tragedy in occurring could have very easily insured that it never happened to begin with.
Insanity. Criminal responsibility or not guilty by reason of insanity can be evaluated through the MMPI-2. The validity scales that show if an individual is responsible by responding; knows the difference between right and wrong; or determines if the individual cannot respond to an incident the individual is accused (Walters, 2011). Bobby was aware of what he was doing, knows right and wrong; but Bobby still suffered from a mental illness. The ...
Even though books are not people, they represent so much in our lives. Poetry allows authors to establish a relationship with things that might not normally go together. They can take a part of an object to represent the object as a whole. “Books” by Kiki Petrosino uses a unique structure, metaphors, and personification to establish her argument that books represent the fertility of woman during pregnancy.
Kip Kinkel killed his parents and killed two students. He open fired at Thurston High School, killing two students and injuring twenty-five. Kinkel had a very tough childhood. His relationship with his father, friends and family played a big role in this horrible event. The day he killed his parents and open fired in the high school and day that will not be forgotten. This event injured many people, made many people upset, and gave many other young kids an idea about bringing violence to their own school.
So many Americans today are in the dark about the true origin of the African descent. From my past experiences in history classes, the teacher of coarse job is to teach from the textbook. The problem with that is the whole truth does not lie between those pages of how African culture became about. I will discuss the first king of Egypt and how his story applies today.
The “Not guilty by reason of insanity” (NGRI) has often perplexed even the most stringent of legal and psychiatric professionals for centuries. Moreover, it has transcended into the pop culture, as a “loophole” for the criminal society. However, the insanity defense is only used in less than 1% of criminal cases, and used successfully in only 10-25% of those cases (Torry and Billick, 2010). In order to successfully be acquitted by reason of insanity, the legal team, paired with psychiatric professionals, must prove that the defendant is not legally responsible for the crime, despite the evidence that they executed the crime. They must also prove that the defendant, was or is currently suffering from a mental disorder, and that the defendant has/had impaired logical control of their actions (Smith, 2011).
Today’s society thrives on violence. Young children made pretend guns and shot at siblings, teenagers enjoyed video games which praised the player for kills, and adults flocked to see the latest horror movie, few people asked what effect this has on people and society. Some psychologists have started researching this effect. A study by Dr. Ferguson;...
Although no one can be entirely sure what motivates teens to commit mass shootings, there are theories that must be examined to develop solutions. One theory states that there are ten factors that contribute to the likelihood of a teen committing murder. These factors include an unstable home life, being bullied at school, obsession with violent entertainment, being suicidal, involvement with drugs or alcohol, involvement with gangs or cults, and mental illness. Usually at least four of these qualities are present in homicidal teens (Khadaroo). While many of these causes stem from home lif...
Family environment and the press are two major influences resulting in the recent tragic school shootings. As much as society continues to focus the killing rampages on factors such as television and music, what children are exposed to in reality contributes to the violence. The most recent school shooting in Michigan involved a six-year-old first grader who killed a classmate with a .22 caliber pistol. The news coverage had vanished after two or three days, and I was left wondering what had happened. Considering the fact that the media wore the Columbine incident out, I wanted to know why they did not pay more attention to this school shooting. As evidence did arrive, it was discovered that the child lived in a household where cocaine, heroin, and many other illegal drugs were commonplace. Also in this “home” guns were easily accessible to the child. Children growing up in this type of environment certainly are likely to be held accountable for future violence. Even though I am against the news media presenting too much school violence, Americans should have been deeply disturbed by this shooting because of the child’s young age. The Michigan shooting should have enlightened Americans to the dilemma we face in this country. Two weeks after the Columbine High School shooting, information on the mass murder was still being broadcast on television. The press was feeding young viewers ideas on how to kill their classmates. News was reported how the teenage murderers acquired information regarding building bombs, obtaining guns, smuggling guns into the school, and proceeding to kill their classmates. A mentally unstable teenager could simply watch these news reports and write a book entitled, “How to Slay Your Classmates”. This onslaught was ridiculous and the news coverage should not have been permitted to continue for countless weeks. Society has determined three reasons on which to blame the shootings. First, the nation blamed it on television’s violent programs. Following that, Americans gave the music recording companies the evil eye as well as attacking the gun manufacturers. All of these reasons involve material objects that are unable to think for themselves. Televisions and CD players do not control themselves, people control them. Finally, boundaries controlling the television programs children view should be set by the parents. The same explanation applies to firearms. How can it be a gun’s fault that a person killed another human being?
“People are so unaware...well, Ignorance is bliss I guess… that would explain my depression.” (Klebold, Dylan). With that sentence, I divulged myself into the most horrendous, sad journal I have ever read, hoping to gain some insight into a disturbed young man’s mind. On April 20th, 1999, Dylan Klebold accompanied his friend, Eric Harris, in one of the most publicized and shocking school shootings of the modern day--The Columbine Massacre. With their sawed-off shotguns and godlike dispositions, the boys exacted their revenge not only on their peers, but on themselves. As the nightmare collapsed, and thirteen people lay dead, the questions began. How could two boys so young commit this crime? What forced them to be this way? For the Klebold family, one question remained: How had Dylan become involved in one of the crimes of the century?
Much of my skepticism over the insanity defense is how this act of crime has been shifted from a medical condition to coming under legal governance. The word "insane" is now a legal term. A nuerological illness described by doctors and psychiatrists to a jury may explain a person's reason and behavior. It however seldom excuses it. The most widely known rule in...
Malcolm, T. Teen Violence: Does Violent Media Make Violent Kids? National Catholic Reporter. May 28, 1999 v35 i30 p14.
Considering the fact that America has more violence per capita than other established Western nations, this considerable exposure to violent acts has desensitized children leading them to become violent. Examining exposure to violence at a young age shows itself in our lives only and will you and you when the children become adolescents as statistics have shown that “homicide involving American teens have seen a 12% increase in violent crimes in 1984 to 1980.” American teens also have seen an increase in teen pregnancies “among young women under the age of fifteen,” showing that the family institution has not fulfilled its obligation to society by sexually regulating the children. The family institutions grip over children has diminished over the past 30 years due to the” rise of peer involvement and the message of defiance from mass media” has contributed to the loss of cohesiveness between parents and children.
Ledingham, Jane E., Ledingham C. A., & Richardson, John E. (1993). La violence dans les médias: ses effets sur les enfants. Retrieved October 28, 2009, from http://dsp-psd.pwgsc.gc.ca/Collection/H72-21-91-1993F.pdf